The Importance Of Internet Stalking

For centuries stalking has been a crime that has left victims without mitigation and terrified for their well being. Stalking has materialized as a criminal activity legally and socially, requiring legal theorists, government agencies, and communities to identify ways to protect victims and punish perpetrators. The current technological era has enabled stalkers to use new mediums to casually torment their victims. The First Amendment’s freedom of speech provision has also inadvertently protected these perpetrators as their explicit messages to victims are often waived under this federal law. It is of vital importance that state legislatures pass new laws that target internet stalkers and common stalkers who attempt to avoid prosecution and …show more content…
Stalking refers to a multitude of behaviors involving continuous persistent attempts to impose upon another individual unwanted contact or communication. In the state of Arizona, the revised statute A.R.S. 13-2923 describes the crime as, “A person commits stalking if the person intentionally or knowingly engages in a course of conduct that is directed toward another person and if that conduct… would cause a reasonable person to fear for their or a [immediate family members] safety” (A.R.S. § 13-2923). Victims experience psychological distress and increased levels of depression long after the initial damage has occurred. These victims tend to continue to feel fearful for their well-being and safety. Stalkers use active and static methods to harass their victims. Active method perpetrators will do such things as wait outside of victims’ places of work, their homes, their family’s homes, and other places their victim may frequent. Passive methods may involve social messaging their victims, calling them, or leaving them suggestive images and gifts at places they frequent. According to an article titled Study of Stalkers by the American Journal of Psychiatry stalking can last for as little as 4 weeks to as long as 20 years. The study found that, “Stalkers revealed a detailed knowledge of the victim’s movements tracking them by phone to work, to friends’ homes, and to other social gathering places” (Mullen & Pathc, 1999). Stalkers often maintained contact with their victims by, “Having repeated approaches in public situations” (Mullen & Pathc, 1999). Interesting enough the study also found, “only a very small minority confined themselves to a single approach” (Mullen & Pathc, 1999). According to the United States Department of Justice the worst type of stalking behavior involves crimes of the worst nature such as assault, rape, and murder. In fact, “36% of victims experience some form of battery or assault